About this tool
How much can I borrow?, explained
Turn a monthly budget or a household income into the home price you can target. Property tax, insurance and HOA fees are paid out of the same budget, so the price reflects what owning the home costs each month.
How to use it
- 1Under Based on, choose Monthly budget or Yearly income, or pick a Start from preset: First home, Family home or Upsizing.
- 2Set the Monthly budget, all in, or the Yearly household income and the Share of income for housing.
- 3Set the Down payment, Mortgage rate and Term, then the Running costs: Property tax per year, Home insurance per year, HOA or service charges per month.
- 4Read the Home price you can target, the amount borrowed, the monthly payment, how the budget splits, and how the price moves with the rate.
How it works
How the home price is calculated
In income mode, the monthly budget is your yearly household income times the share you set for housing, divided by 12. The share starts at 28%, a common rule of thumb.
The budget is all in: it pays the mortgage, the property tax, a twelfth of the yearly insurance and the monthly HOA charges. Property tax is a percentage of the price, so it grows with the home you target, and the calculator solves for that exactly. What is left for the mortgage is turned into the loan it would repay over the term at your rate, the standard payment formula run in reverse, and the home price is that loan plus your down payment.
With the starting figures, a $2,200 budget, $60,000 down, 6.2% over 30 years, 1.1% property tax and $1,500 of insurance a year, the target is about $346,877: $286,877 borrowed at $1,757 a month, plus $443 for tax and insurance.
Closing costs, mortgage insurance and maintenance are not included. The chart shows the target price at rates from three points below to three points above yours.
Loan = a × (Budget − Down payment × t − Insurance / 12 − HOA) / (1 + a × t), with a = (1 − (1 + r)^−n) / r, r = rate / 12, n = years × 12 and t = property tax % / 12. Home price = Loan + Down payment
When to use it
Ways people use it
Setting a search range before viewing homes
Turn a comfortable payment into a price ceiling that already counts tax and insurance.
Comparing rate scenarios
Click Compare with a scenario B, change the rate or the term in B, and see the two target prices side by side.
Starting from income
Switch to Yearly income to see what a given share of your pay buys, then lower the share to leave room for other debts.
Weighing an area with higher taxes
Raise the property tax or add HOA charges and watch the target price fall at the same budget. Copy link keeps your figures to send to a partner.
FAQ
Questions people ask
How much house can I afford?
Start from the total you can spend on housing each month, take out tax, insurance and fees, turn the rest into a loan at today's rate and add your down payment. That is what this calculator does.
Does the monthly budget include taxes and insurance?
Yes. The budget is all in: it covers the mortgage payment, property tax, home insurance and HOA charges. The split bar under the result shows how much of it goes to each.
What share of my income should go to housing?
A common rule of thumb keeps housing under about 28% of gross income, where the calculator starts. Lenders apply their own limits.
Is a 30 year or a 15 year mortgage better?
A 30 year term lowers the payment, so the same budget targets a higher price. A 15 year term costs far less interest; compare both with scenario B and read the Total interest over the term.
Is this the amount a bank will lend me?
It is an estimate. A lender sets the final amount after checking your income, debts and credit, and may approve more or less.